Yahya Khan

Yahya Khan (4 February 1917-10 August 1980) was President of Pakistan from 26 March 1969 to 20 December 1971, succeeding Ayub Khan and preceding Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

Biography
Yahya Khan was born on 4 February 1917 in Chakwal, Punjab, British India to a family of Sunni Muslim Pashtuns. In 1939, he was commissioned into the British Indian Army and served in the 10th Baluch Regiment in North Africa during World War II. In June 1942, he was captured by the Axis Powers, and he escaped from a prisoner-of-war camp in Italy after three attempts. Khan went on to serve in Iraq and Italy, and in 1947 he joined the army of Pakistan upon its independence. An alcoholic who loved prostitutes, he managed to balance his desires with his profession as a soldier, and he fought in the Kashmir wars with India. In 1965, he failed to carry out Operation Grand Slam against the Indian Army, which allowed for Indian forces to move on Lahore; in 1966, he was nevertheless promoted to Lieutenant-General and made Chief-of-Staff of the Pakistani Army. In 1969, Ayub Khan handed power to Yahya Khan, who became the new President of Pakistan. On the same day, he declared martial law, installing a military government and dissolving the parliament. In 1970, he changed the name of the Pakistani homeland to "Pakistan", dropping the "West" in "West Pakistan", while present-day Bangladesh remained "West Pakistan". In 1970, the Awami League won elections in West Pakistan and began an independence struggle against Pakistan, and the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 saw war crimes be committed by the Pakistan Army against Hindu and Buddhist Bengalis as well as India siding with the Mukti Bahini guerrillas against the Pakistani military. Khan was forced to make peace with India and grant independence to Bangladesh, and he became very unpopular among his people. On 20 December 1971, he was scared by rumors of a coup and decided to step down, letting Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and the Pakistan Peoples Party win the elections. Khan died in Rawalpindi, Punjab of alcoholism.